Choosing a Pedagogy for Your Programme

What is pedagogy?

Pedagogy is the method and practice of teaching, how learning is designed and delivered, rather than just what content is covered. Approaches to pedagogy sit on a spectrum from teacher-focused (the teacher/trainer at the center of the process) to learner-focused (the learner playing an active role in their own learning).

When you select a pedagogy for your programme, you're telling the AI tool how to shape its responses, the way it explains things, structures exercises, and guides your learners. Below are the four approaches you can choose from.

The four pedagogical approaches

1. Constructivist Approach

Constructivism is built on the idea that learners construct their own understanding of the world, drawing on lived experience as they grow. Rather than passively receiving information, learners use what they already know as a foundation for making sense of new concepts.

Best suited to: programmes where learners bring relevant prior experience or workplace knowledge that new content can build on. The AI will ask learners to draw on what they already know, prompt them to make their own connections, and avoid simply handing over facts.

2. Collaborative Approach

This approach puts the emphasis on learners working together to build a shared understanding. It plays to the strength of the group, pooling different perspectives, skills and experience and creates space for learners to interact by exchanging ideas, sharing knowledge, and reviewing or evaluating each other's work.

Best suited to: cohort-based learning, group projects, or programmes where peer discussion and shared problem-solving add real value. The AI will encourage discussion, invite multiple viewpoints, and frame tasks around working with others rather than working alone.

3. Reflective Approach

The reflective approach centers on analysing what's happening in the learning process itself, both for the learner and the trainer and using that analysis to improve practice. This is often achieved through self-evaluation, journaling, or diary-style reflection, either to improve a specific practice or to work through a particular problem a learner is encountering.

Best suited to: programmes with a strong practical or workplace-based element, where ongoing self-assessment and improvement are part of the learning journey. The AI will prompt learners to reflect on their own progress and practice, rather than simply moving them on to the next topic.

4. Integrative Approach

The integrative approach helps learners make connections between what they're currently learning and other topics elsewhere in the curriculum, rather than treating information as isolated facts. It's more common in higher education but can be valuable at other levels too, helping learners build a broader picture and stay engaged with the material.

Best suited to: programmes with several interlinked modules or topics, where it's useful for learners to see how different pieces of knowledge relate to one another. The AI will draw connections back to earlier or related topics rather than treating each subject in isolation.

How to choose

The right choice depends on your learners, your subject matter, and how your programme is structured. As a quick guide: